The Problem with Preterism
It is Built on the Sand of the Neronic Date
Ask a preterist about preterism and he will
talk about
Nero, the fall of Jerusalem and Matthew 24.
But ask an historicist about preterism and he
will
argue that the book of Revelation was written
in A.D. 96 during the reign of Emperor Domitian.
The Early Fathers Agreed
John was Banished by Domitian
"Early Christian tradition is almost
unanimous in
assigning
the Apocalypse to the last years of Domitian."
Henry
Barclay Swete
Two Persecutions
Comparison Provides Key Insights
The persecutions under Nero and
Domitian differed in scope. Nero's
persecutions were
limited to Rome whereas Domintian persecuted
Christians throughout the empire.
Further, there is no historical record
that Nero
banished anyone. We read of
imprisonment,
confiscation, hunting to death
with dogs, crucifixion, beheading,
drenching
with oil and then setting on fire but,
banishment is
never mentioned.
The First Seal of Revelation
The Golden Age of the Roman Empire
And I saw a white horse: and he that
sat on
him had a
bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he
went forth conquering, and to
conquer.
Rev 6:2
The Roman Empire had been in a steady decline
until
John completed writing the book of
Revelation. Then
Domitian was assassinated. Suddenly its
fortunes
changed under the leadership of "the five
good emperors."
The first seal's symbols signify victory and
prosperity
which no one could have foreseen before Nerva
became emperor. Click on the link below to see
how dramatically John's prophecy was fulfilled.
The Cambridge "Greats" Behind the Neronic Date
Henry Barclay Swete vs. the Big Three
"Notwithstanding the external and internal
evidence
which supports
the Domitianic date, the great Cambridge
theologians
of the last
century were unanimous in regarding the
Apocalypse
as a work
of the reign of Nero." Henry Barclay Swete.
Henry Barclay Swete (1835-1917) was Regius
Professor of Divinity
at Cambridge. He was considered an authority
on the
dating of the Apocalypse.
The great Cambridge theologians Swete refers to
above
are
the familiar
trio Lightfoot, Hort and Westcott.
These men
were very
influential in the generation before him at
Cambridge
and he knew them well.
In 1911 he published a special edition of his
classic Commentary on the Apocalypse to
refute
Dr. Hort on the date of the Apocalypse. Swete
acknowledges the weight of
the "threefold cord of scholarly
opinion" of these men but makes three
interesting
observations:
- They had not done any serious work on the
subject.
- They did not challenge the testimony of
the early
fathers.
- Their arguments on "internal evidence"
were not
substantiative.
Known for his modesty, Swete nevertheless took a
bold stand for the Domitian dating while
downplaying
the "authority" of his Cambridge predecessors.
Swete, Henry Barclay, Commentary on the
Apocalypse,
Macmillan, London, 1911, 3rd ed., pp 99-110.
